The Stevens Family
by Pagan
Summary: until one of the Stevens heirs come to age Douglas Maxwell Stevens II, 18 and Aedia Mariana Stevens, 21 to claim their respective stocks within the company. If one of the twins are deceased their stock goes to the other.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own gundam Wing, I'm just borrowing them but I do own the characters i create.

"Duo, I think you should sit down."

"Q-man, there's nothing you can show me that can scare me."

Quatre grabbed his arm and directed him to the sofa. "I REALLY think you should sit down."

Trowa placed a hand on the long haired boy's shoulders and pressed him into the sofa. "We aren't going to scare you but its important that you sit for this."

"Trowa used more than five words in a sentence this has to be a big deal." Duo joked but his nervousness showed as he sat.

"What's going on?" Wufei asked suspiciously moving quickly to Duo's side.

"I found these in my father's vault. They are video archives of members of my family...my father's youngest sister and her family." Quatre explained. He nodded to Trowa who pressed play on the remote in his hands.

'Quatra!' a little kid's voice screeched from beyond the picture. It was focused on a small blonde haired boy.

"AW Q-MAN! You're such a cutie. Right Tro?"

"Watch." Quatra blushed ignoring Trowa's smirk and nod.

'Douglas!' They watched little Quatre run towards another child with long sandy hair.

Wufei sucked in a breath.  
Quatre and Trowa watched Duo.  
The child had violet eyes and an elfish face.

"That's me, isn't it?"

"Keep watching." Was their ownly answer.

'Dougie, I'm gonna hit you!'

Another little person ran into view. Duo stopped breathing...

'Aw, Aedia, its not my fault your slow...don't hit!' Little Duo complained.

This child had sandy hair in pigtails and tear-filled violet eyes.

'What happened?' Little Quatre asked.

'Dougie's a bad bwother. I felt down and he ran aways!' The little child named Aedia answered pointing to her knee.

'Are you hurt? I'm sorry. I would have helped if I saw you fall. You're my baby sister I'm have ta.' Little Duo hugged her.

'I'm not a baby. Mama, tell Dougie I'm not a baby and he's not older.' Aedia stomped her sneakered foot.

The video image toggled for a moment and a gray curtain came over the picture fading away to reveal a long blonde haired woman. She wore a pink sweater and a long gray skirt. 'Aedia, honey, Douglas is older...but only by five minutes.' They watched as the woman examined her daughter's knee. 'You're okay. It doesn't look like we need to cut off your leg.' She joked.

'That not funny, Mama!'

'Ha! Ha! See you are the baby and you're little too.' Little Duo teased.

'Douglas, don't tease your sister. Its not her fault she's small.' Her profil came into view and exposed a great resemblance to Quater.

"YOu have your mother's lips, love." Wufei told Duo grabbing his lover's hand.

'Sorry.'

'Aedia, stop crying before you make Quatre cry.' Her mother chided. 'Besides your not that hurt, its only a little scrap.'

'Mama, why ain't I special like Aedia and Quatre?' Little Duo asked.

'Aint isn't a word, Douglas. And of course-'

'Mama, Solo said ain't is a word.' Aedia interrupted.

'I'll correct Christopher on that later and don't interrupt.' She scolded gathering her son into her lap, 'You're just as special as your cousin and your sister. All my children as special just in their own unique way.'

'How?' Little Quatre asked.

'You have the space heart like my mother - your grandmother.' She touched Little Quatre's face, 'That means my darling, that you can see inside people...see their souls.'

'Huh?'

'You see what no one else sees that real person. You'll lose your heart to emerald eyes.' She said knowingly.

"Boy, she called it." Wufei said, the Duo in him coming out.

The prophesed pair blushed, Duo's eyes didn't leave the screen as he examined himself and his mother, his sister's back was to the camera.

'And you my two, project - that means you make people feel a certain way around you. Douglas you make them happy and Aedia makes them feel contentment...a quiet happy.'

'What else, Mama?' Aedia asked enthuastically.

'You have a sixth sense and foresight. Douglas has foresight.' She explained.

'I don't have anything else?' Little Quatre asked saddly.

'You have compassion and that is a rare gift in and of itself...let it lead you, little man.' Duo watched his mother kiss Quatre then himself and his sister.

'Filling their mind with drivel again.'

'Shut up, Ayden!'

Two men came into view - one they knew as Ayden Remsey Winner.

"Father Maxwell." Duo said softly recognizing the other man.

'Cook has lunch ready.' The man identified as Father Maxwell picked him up from his mother's lap, 'Ready to go, my little prince.'

'Yep, Papa. What's for lunch?' Little Duo asked.

'I don't want brocolli.' Aedia said as Ayden picked her up.

'Its good for you my little namesake.'

'Then you eat it.' She retorted.

'Aedia Mairana Steven, mind your tone with your uncle.' Their mother scolded as she bent down to pick up Quatre. 'Apologize.'

'No.'

Gray came before the camera again and the screen went black. Duo turned immediately to Quatre.

"Cassia Ayne Winner Steven died on October 2, AC185 on L2-59764 in an explosion investigators believed to be for your father. Her daughter and son were thought to be dead, their bodies MIA were said to have disintegrated in the explosion." Quatre read off a file on his palm pilot. "Your father was shot and believed to be dead at a board meeting after his last board meeting."

"Last board meeting?" Wufei asked placing an arm around the distraught Duo.

"Your father intended to take you and your sister to EArth according to his father's files...after the last assassination attempt on your lives on L2." Trowa explained handing a paper to Wufei to read...the paper was at least 12 years old.

"Assassination attempt?" Wufei asked concerned.

"The Stevens family owns more than half of Winner Enterprises." Trowa explained nodded to the paper in Wufei's hand.

"WSE will be run solely by the Ayden Remsey Winner until one of the Stevens heirs come to age - Douglas Maxwell Stevens II, 18 and Aedia Mairana Stevens, 21 - to claim their respective stocks within the company. If one of the twins are deceased their stock goes to the other. In the event that my heirs are both deceased, half of their stock is to become public interest the other half to be controlled by Quatre Rabera Winner." Wufei read.

"Douglas is considered dead. Aedia controls his stock." Trowa explained.

"He's 21. If Aedia is his twin so is she."

"You're not 21 yet, your birth day is July 21, that's a four days away." A voice said from behind them. "YOur sister has to get here and take a DNA test to prove she's Aedia Mairana Stevens."

"Iria?" Quatre questioned.

"Aedia isn't dead. She's been living with your father's family since before the war began. Eden Kushranada was very much alive last I heard." Iria told them as she entered the room.

They all paled. "Kushranada?"

"The Kushranada's had a daughter." Trowa said softly, "I heard about it when I joined Mariamaia's forces. They said she was in a coma in some underground facility that no one could find. The Bartons' searched but Trieze hid his little sister well."

"Eden Kushranda - the opera singer?" Wufei asked dazzled.

"There's a picture of her on father's computer...she was his favorite performer. Use the image modifier to give it Duo's features." Iria told Trowa. "Take Duo with you, Trowa."

Trowa helped Duo up and led him from the room.

Iria waited until the door was closed behind them. "I just got a phone call from Heero Yuy, he and his wife are in danger, Quatre. Someone send someone from the spaceport to attack their ship...They are trapped in the old stadium." She pulled a weapon from beneath her jacket. "I have Rashid and 10 of his men waiting in a van out front. I have med tech ready."

"Heero has a wife?" Wufei asked Quatre following him as he stormed out of the room.

"Yeah...Duo's sister." 


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Gundam not mine, everyone else is. Question does Une have a last/first name...I doubt lady is her first.

Heero

Two weeks after the Barton Conflict.

Une waited. It was quitting time for most of her Preventers. The few that remained were only completing their reports. She glanced over at the time and then at the message in her hand. 3 days 6 hours and 10 minutes, that's how long it was taking her to resolve this conflict.

She had promised to protect her and she would. She hired the best using money no one knew about. Money he had left for this exact purpose. Only she knew where she was, what to do and what he wanted - he protection was his top priority. She heard her door slip open and waited until she sensed him closer to her desk. He was the best and she recalled dicussing his desire for a new life with Maxwell briefly over New year's.

"You have it?" She handed him a manilla envelope and waited. She heard him open it. She still hadn't looked at him. "And the information."

"You understand she's innocent and is to remain unharmed at all costs." Une looked at him now. His dishelved brown hair covering his icy blue eyes. "You are a bodyguard, Yuy. I hired you because you're the best and you know how to keep yourself out of trouble."

"Un." He replied staring down at her. He watched as she shoulders straightened with militant precision.

"Mariemaia will be with her." Une told him quietly her eyes leveling with his own. He was the old Une creeping into that stare. It was a warning.

He nodded. She tossed a disk in his direction. "This is all?"

"All the information you need will be on there. Your passport and new identity is in the other package." She rose to her full 5' 8" and moved around the table in front of him. "Anything happens, I'll hunt you down and destroy you. Not even President Dorlan will be able to help you."

She watched as he turned away and silently exited as he arrived. "I did what you asked, Trieze-love. I can't do anything else."

small run down motel just off of the main highway out of Capital City

Heero kicked off his shoes and strode over to the lap top on the bed. He tossed the money evelope onto his pillow and loaded the disk he ahd be given.

"Aedia Mariana Stevens/Eden Marie Kushranada; Born to Douglas Maxwell Stevens I and Cassia Ayne Winner Stevens on July 21."

A picture followed of a two girls one with brown hair and strange gray eyes and the other with blonde hair and blue-violet eyes. The file went on to explain the the first picture is what the girl actually looks like and the other is what the girl looked like disguised. Her medical records proceeded to follow the appear explanation. Heero scanned down the page notting a few important highlighted factors. Allergies, asthma when panicked fibulator recommended, medications she was able to take or not take. He scrolled down stopping at a triple underlined, yellow highlight, boldfaced italicized 16 pt Arial font capitalized word BLIND.

"Has been blind since the attack on the Trieze family home in the south of France at 12. Reason for blindness is brain damage in..." He quickly skimmed over the rest commiting to memory every detail of her handicap. He nodded that the girl was brilliant and savvy. As the file continued to unfold it remarked upon event that occurred in the war that made him ill. An attack on the palace Trieze had been captured in by Romafella had resulted in her condition for the last year - comatose. He continued to read. he reached the last line he nodded closing the file.

He looked over at his cell phone and wanted to call Quatre. The file Une had given him had told him specifically under no circumstances was attention by the media, existing Trieze faction, the Barton or Winners (all groups that appeared to be looking for this person) were to be alerted to the fact that she existed.

The tickets Une had purchased were for tonight. He was to leave in a half hour. He packed away her information removing her new passport and information from the package. Aedia Yukishiro, age 17, married; born in Turkey raised in Tibet. There was another passbook but he knew that was for Mariemaia.

A knock on his door surprised him. He covered everything with a pillow. "Who is it?"

"Aedia." A soft voice sang on the other side of the door. It sounded peppy and overly friendly like Duo's. "Open the door, Hiroshi." He moved towards the door quickly looking through the window at the young female. "You can frisk me when I come inside if that'll help."

He rolled his eyes at the ridiculous statement. If she was able to hide anything in that skin tight ski outfit, he deserved to die. "Wasn't I suppose to meet you in Tibet."

"You were but people were getting to close to the Temple so I relocated us to France." She told him her hands reaching out in the air. "Is anything in front of me?"

"No."

"A man of little words. Most people would have asked me 'shouldn't you have a dog or a stick?' I have a stick if you must know. I just didn't want to take it out in front of the motel staff. And why did you pick a place that smelled so much like urine is beyond me." She reached out her hands a bit more taking a tenative step forward. "Could you lead me to a chair? I'll explain why I'm here when I'm sitting."

He grabbed her hand and sat her on a sofa by the window. "Thank you. I'm here because the file Lesile gave me said that my passport has me married to my bodyguard. I thought it might be more believable if we arrived at our destination together as an actual married couple. I also thought you should get to know exactly what you're in for. Lesile probably gave you-"

"Lesile?"

"Lesile Une." He looked at her, he never suspected that Lady Une's real name was Lesile...Lady seemed more appropriate. "But you don't get to call her that. She wouldn't be happy if you did. We can discuss this later though, our plane leaves in half an hour. We're going to Switzerland then taking a private charter plane to France. My niece is already there being protected by my guards."

He said nothing but watched as she rose and walked towards him. "I'm going to touch you...it won't be inappropriate. I need a feel of you. Can you stand up please?" He did as she asked watching as she stood as close to as possible "Your'e taller than me. That's good. I always liked tall men." Her hands went to his shoulders, down his arms to his hands, "fist your primary hand...the one you do-" He fisted both hands. She smiled, "So am I." She pressed her hand into his fists until they were flat. "You have caluses but they are not from sword fighting. I fight with a sword. Trieze worshipped the honesty of it was a weapon. He taught me to fight before I lost my vision and had someone come teach me to fight after I lost my vision. It helped heightened my senses." She stepped away from him and smiled. "We're leaving soon. I'll just sit and wait until you pack and change...bag of clothing I just purchased outside the door. Their brown and blue, those are my favorite colors. I had the sales person pick out the same style clothing in various sizes for a man. Something in there should fit you. Every else we should give away. If you know anyone...we'll carry it with us until you can send it to them."

Heero went to the door opened it and saw that they were several bags just outside to the left. He shook his head and dragged them inside. Neiman Marcus. And she left them outside. He thought to himself as he entered. He looked at the small girl sitting in the chair. "I can't change with you sitting there."

"Do you want me to stand outside?" She volunteered getting up, he saw in her hand was a paperback novel. "Its not like I can see anything?"

He shook his head bringing the bags to the bed. The phone started to ring. "Does Une know you're here?" She shook her head. He picked up the phone, connected the call and placed it into her hands. "That's her."

"Lesile?" He heard her say happily as she arranged the phone by here ear. "Yes, Lesile, its me." She flinched and pushed the phone away from her ear. He heard Une bellowing on the otherside, "I know...Lesile, don't yell at me...let me explain...I SAID tet me explain. I swear you're as bad as Trieze sometimes...alright. She's in France. I came directly here...you're not going to like the answer...I had your phone bugged with a tracer..." He watched as she as the phone was pushed away. "Lesile says hello."

"DO NOT HANG UP THAT PHONE, YOUNG LADY!" He heard Une's voice screech through the phone. It was the first time he'd ever heard her screech. He finished packing his things and quickly sorted through the clothes pulling out his size. "MISERABLE BRAT!"

"We're going to be late for out plane if we don't go, Lesile. I have a car waiting for us downstairs. I love you." She rushed into the phone. The screeching had stopped and he heard her sigh in relief. "Yes, I will. No, he's dressing...its not like I can SEE anything. I'll talk to you soon. Love ya. Bye." He watched her finger the phone trying, "I don't know how to shut this off." He took her finger and placed it over the off button. "You's would think she'd be used to me bugging her phone. I did it all the time to by brother."

"You bugged Trieze's phone." She nodded and he smiled. "I haven't introduced myself."

"Your name is Yukishiro, Hiroshi. Brown hair, blue eyes born in Kyoto 18 years ago. You were orphaned and left in charge of your family's estate young. You were sent to space with live with your remaining family before the war. Attended a university on earth and received a degree in computer graphics." She recited his cover story to him, "That's all I need to know for now. I'll get you to talk, sooner or later."

Heero finished dressing, zipping the heavy blue ski coat she bought for him. He packed the stuff he could give to Duo, Quatre, Trowa and Wufei in his empty duffle. He left the rest in the room. "Do we have a back story why we are here?"

"Shopping and I missed you." She got up when she heard his approach. "I'm not a clinger, so you won't have to worry about me doing that to you. I am leaner on occasion. I'm tactile because I'm blind. I touch to see." She reached around for his hands.

"You didn't touch my face." He told her leading her towards the door opening it as .

"Eventually." She answered there was a lilt in her voice that made him smile..very little. 


	3. Chapter 3

AN - GW characters never mine...everyone is.

Aedia

The silence is as suffocating as the eternal darkness she lived in. The flight to Switzerland was so quiet, Aedia thought it might have been a funeral procession instead of a light. An hour into the flight, she silence drummed at her senses making her wish she'd purchased business class or economy just to be surrounded by some sort of life. She hummed the first few bars of Fear closing her eyes during the chorus she began to sing softly to herself. Hiroshi quickly squeezed her wrist, the chair sounded as he leaned towards her to whisper in her ear. "You're bringing attention to yourself."

She nodded quietly and reached above her head for the stewardess button. She felt his arm raise and snapped, "I'll do it." She was happy when the button dinged. A few minutes later, she asked the stewardess for headphones. He asked her for a pillow and a blanket. The silence continued between them until the stewardess returned.

"Those aren't mine." She heard Hiroshi tell the woman.

"I thought you might want to help her -"

"If she needs help she'll ask for it." She felt a pillow placed behind her head and he blanket thrown across her lap. She extended her hand for the headphones and smiled as she felt a perfectly manicured hand press them into her own reluctantly. "Thank you."

Aedia quickly opened the head phone and placed each one unto her ears relieving the suffocating silence. She searched her arm rest for the plug, she felt him direct her finger towards the plug and smiled her thanks. She felt overwhelmed as classical music filled her. She woke up in silence. The sounds of classical music or rock music met her ears. No guards changing post or talking quietly outside her door. No Trieze yelling outside her window for her to have tea with him in the garden.

No Trieze. She bit her lip as she mumbled it softly under her breath. She sensed Hiroshi tense beside her and imagined he was looking around to see if anyone else had heard. She didn't care. She woke up to find out it was a year later and her wondeous older brother had died in the war. She found out by accident and didn't receive the details until Leslie had managed to sneak away from her position as Head Preventer. Leslie had brought her a copy of the final televised battle between Marq, who was dead as well, and a Gundam Pilot called Heero Yuy. She didn't want to see it. She wanted to yell and did at Leslie. "Why didn't you save him?" Over and Over she demanded an answer from Leslie - the one person in the world that loved her brother as much as she did. Who held her as she shouted accusations. She cried apologies to Leslie for hours. They cried together.

A month later Mareimaia came puppetted by the deceitful Barton Family. She remembered Mareimaia when she was an infant...her niece was the last thing she saw. She said good night to the toddler and went to bed waking up again blind and burned - compliments of the Barton Family. Bastards.

At least she had a piece of her family, Mareimaia was alive. Aedia let the music overwhelm her and drifted away with it. The plane station, if that what you could call the music offered by the airlines Smetana "the Moldau". When she lost her vision she discovered a new atmosphere of creativity within her. Classical music inspired the most creative thoughts to bloom from her heart. She was her own television with her eyes closes. She felt her begin to conduct with her left hand. Hiroshi grabbed her hand again and placed it down on her wrist. This made Aedia smile.

Leslie had chosen well for her bodyguard. She remembered the file she read, the fingered her way quickly passed his appearance and towards the personal characteristics. He was a type A person, organized, precise and meticulously detailed. That's all Leslie wrote about him. Ten short lines that told her nothing except that he was one hell of a soldier that didn't know how to relax. His age had surprised her when she reached his cover story, Yukishiro, Hiroshi age 18. She laughed when Leslie had arranged it that they would be married, the plan was brilliant and a piece of him wanted to ask what he thought of being "married" at 18 to a 17 year old handicap. She wanted to ask him that so bad.

"Put your seat belt on we're landing in Germany." Hiroshi whispered in her ear causing her to jump.

"We are?" She felt her headphones removed and felt the blanket removed from her body. She reached for her seatbelt and fastened it as waited to hear the pilots announcement. "Did they say why we're landing?"

"Engine problems." He answered quickly. She heard the click of his own seat belt. He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "We're catching a private charter from here to France." She nodded and reached into her pocket to pull out chewing gum. She didn't want her ears to pop as they descended. The silence once again suffocated her. The occassional breaks of btching and moaning from the other passengers helped her to relax a bit. She sense him staring at her but didn't turn towards him.

When the plane landed she quickly unfastened herself. He did the same and quickly reached into the overhead compartment for his bags. She reached out her hand and he grabbed it helping her up quickly and down the isle the stewardess was telling them to exit down. "We'll borrow plane from a friend of mine."

When they were down the stairs she reached into her pocket and pulled out her retractable walking stick. She held it in front of her, she felt better having it out when they were moving. She wasn't familiar with the area and with so many people she felt clumsy. "Make sure the pilot knows how to get to Province Rive en Fleurs. There's a private airport in the province."

She allowed him to lead her through the crowd and into the terminal once they entered it. The smell of sweating bodies was nauseating to her. She listened to the sounds around her as he weaved her in and out of the groups of people. She felt herself pressed against a wall and heard his parka open, then his cell phone as he turned it on and dialed. She moved a few feet away from him to keep from listening to his conversation. She listened to the tones of his voice, it was a deep timbre filled with assertiveness and complete certainty. "Sexy," she said to herself.

"Thank you." She heard someone answer her. The voice was male and seemed to stop in front of her. "Are you staying in-"

"Hey, sweetheart, we have to get going." Hiroshi told her grabbing her arm. She felt herself gently pulled back through the groups of people. This walk was longer and the sounds seemed to grow at some points. "We'll take a cab to the plane. The pilot is familiar with the area you mention. Will someone be there to pick us up when we land?"

"I just have to make a phone call. I'll do it once we know our ETA to the landing strip." She answered him. "You don't like talking much do you?" He didn't answer. "Its very lovely there though you won't see much until the spring." She told him happily filling the silence he would have left between them. She heard the automatic doors slid open in front of them and shuddered as the winter frost kissed her skin. She pulled her scarf around her face and waited. Around her she heard people whistle, shout and what sounded like slushing of snow beneath feet for a cab. She felt herself pulled and gently tucked into a cab. "I am not a cripple."

He said nothing again to her. He pushed their bags beside her sliding in after them. "WSE landing strip please."

"What did you just say?" She asked as she reached for the handle on the door. "Why WSE?"

Hiroshi didn't answer her and silently as the car started to pull away. She felt herself tense as the car seemed to speed away quickly. The trip to the landing strip seemed ridiculously short her hands clenching and unclenching. She wasn't ready to deal with them and Leslie had assured her that Hiroshi knew nothing about the situation. He would know eventually, the man was brilliant otherwise Leslie wouldn't have hired him. If she was discovered things would go bad quickly and she needed someone who was quick on their feet.

She brought her hand to her forehead and rubbed it. "My life just gets harder." When the car stopped she quickly got out and stood on the otherside of the door. She listened as Hiroshi spoke to someone, probably the cabdriver and then heard him open the door shuffling the bags and himself out of the cab.

"Sir, we received a message from Master Quatre. We have the plane ready for you. If you'll just step unto this transport it will take you there." A voice just to the left of her told Hiroshi. She used her stick and started towards that voice, "Oh, please allow me to help you, Miss."

"This is my wife, Edie." Hiroshi introduced her to the person who gently took her hand and kiss it.

"It is my fondest pleasure to meet you, Madame." She felt the man carefully lead her into the transport.

"Merci." She answered graciously. "I am honored to meet a gentleman such as yourself." She said automatically. Hiroshi entered behind her and she felt the vehicle pull off, "Have a nice day."

"Can I ask you a question?" She whispered in his ear after a while. He didn't answer. "Did you fight in the war?" She felt him tense but he still didn't answer. "Were you in space with my brother? If you are, would you be willing to answer some of my questions?" When he still said nothing she pulled away and leaned back in her chair. She sighed and scratched her head - this wig was making her crazy, so were the contacts she was wearing. The makeup on her hands and face weren't helping either. She would wait until they were in the plane when removed them.

"I'm not." He answered her they stopped. She felt herself pulled out on his side and rushed quickly across hard ground. The slight crunch beneath her boots let her know that they salted recently. She would love to see snow again or just white. Maybe if she asked him he would describe it to her. She needed to make him much more articulate if she intended to take him around the world. "How soon before we take off?" He asked.

"We just finished fueling and we're getting exact directions to this location. Its appears to be in the middle of no where."

"That's not true. Its just a very small province. Its not any major trade route but its a still a lovely area. There's two towns there one Blanc Epais and the other Fuyant Dans, they by-"

"That should be enough for you to find it." Hiroshi interrupted her. she heard him ascend up metal stairs and frowned. "Five steps."

She used her stick to find the steps as Hiroshi let her go. There was a thin rail on the side and helped her balance. "Is there a bathroom on board?"

"On the left to the back." The pilot told her.

She lead herself down towards. She found it and searched for the handle. An arm reached behind her and opened it. "Don't be too long."

"Merci." She quickly stepped inside and closed the door behind her. She used her stick to find the toilet, sink and towel rack (?). She rested her stick against the toilet. She checked if the toilet had a seat and closed it once she found that it had. She threw her gloves on the tiolet seat. She reached up and removed the hat placing there as well. She then removed the pins from the blonde wig that was attached to the skin cap that kept it in place. She removed the skin cap and shook her hairs down her back, it was much longer than she remembered falling down her back just above her bottom. She hated how fast her hair grew and couldn't wait to cut it. She placed the pins in the cap and folded everything into the wig and dropped it unto the closed toilet. She washed her hands carefully before starting to removed her contacts, being blind was enough of an optical problem for her she didn't need a sty or pink eye. She removed the first contact placing it under water so it would dissolve into solution and then did the same to the left one. She blinked a couple of times hoping to tear up and moisten her eyes. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a foaming face cloth package, removing the clothe and ran it under the water. She started washing her hands and wrists removing the make up that was applied to make her skin appear darker. They told her the make up would come right off with the water and foam so she hoped that it would work. She rinsed her hand and rubbed them to see if any inch of her skin felt any different than the rest. Her hands hand always been soft despite the caluses from wielding a sword. She cupped water into her hands and threw it into her face before taking another foaming face clothe from it package wetting it and cleaning her face scrubbing throughly until it started to get a bit irritated. She closed her eyes to keep the foam from burning and remove the eyes make up that had been applied. She hated make up but had been putting it on so long to hide herself that it became routine...she was happy to finally have that routine end. Aedia Yukishiro didn't need to wear make up to hid behind the image of Eden Kushranada, even if that marriage wasn't real. She wondered what she looked like. In her pictures her hair was brown and her eyes seemed a wierd blue, she always wondered if she still looked the same under the make up.

She's ask Hiroshi, maybe he'd answer her this time.

She rinsed the foam from her face and reached over to her left in search of a towel from the rack. As she dried her face she wondered if there was a shower on this small plane as well. "This towel is way too big for a hand towel." Thank God it smelled clean, she thought as she tried to hand it back the way she found it on the rack.

"Pilot's ready."

"Okay." She answered reaching for the clothes she left in the sink intending to flush them down the toilet. She picked up her gloves, hat and the wig lifting off the toilet seat. She threw the clothes in with her other hand and they automatically flushed. She shrugged and put the toilet seat down. She grabbed her stick and found the door opening it. She heard Hiroshi stop typing and start to unbuckled himself. "Sorry it took me a while to clean all the make up off my face. Did I get it off?"

"Make u-" Hiroshi seemed to choke on something.

"Are you okay? Pilot!" She started to call to the front.

"Yes?" The pilot called back.

"Its nothing." Hiroshi answered getting up and walking towards her. She felt him pull her towards the seats and seat her on the inside.

"You choked." She reminded him as she buckled herself in.

"You just startled me." She heard him settle himself in a seat and buckle in. "You reminded me of someone."

"A friend of yours?" She asked. Hiroshi didn't answer her so she called to the pilot. "We're ready, pilot. How long will it take to get there?"

"Two hours." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a cell phone. It only had four numbers. The first one, Leslie, the second, her doctor and the third the body guards guarding her niece. The fourth would belong to Hiroshi. "Its me Eden. I'll be arriving in two hours at the landing strip. I want a car to meet us there." She hung up the phone and put it away. "I'm going to take a nap." She closed her eyes attempting to avoid the silence that would exist between them.

"Looks exactly like him." She heard Hiroshi mumble under his breath. She knew he was trying to be silent but he didn't know about her hearing. She allowed herself to relax but his words rang in her head.Him, she thought. The only him I could look like is...

Maybe, she thought happiness filling her heart, maybe he's alive. She'd been looking for so long...maybe Hiroshi knew him.

Aedia fell asleep this time hoping. 


End file.
